Welcome Zeke.
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An average day
- Thread starter ICE
- Start date
Inspector Gadget
Registered User
Inspector Gift
Sawhorse - Made in USA
To make matters worse, that looks like vinyl siding... Is it? And I don't suppose the installer had a permit for the chimney???
Was that over time or all at once?
Believe it or not, I think that I was there for a pool pre-gunite inspection. The whole place reminded me of how mushrooms revert back to earth.
Believe it or not, I think that I was there for a pool pre-gunite inspection. The whole place reminded me of how mushrooms revert back to earth.
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Inspector Gadget
Registered User
Most installers would know better.
Based on the amount of soot, I'm going to suggest they were burning green wood during a cold snap. Green wood leads to creosote, which leads to increased chance of chimney fires.
This could have been much, much worse.
Zeke
Registered User
mtlogcabin
SAWHORSE
When was the last time you were on the roof of an old mall? Did you happen to notice the small satellite coax cables running down the plumbing waste vent stacks? I wish I had pictures showing that.
steveray
SAWHORSE
steveray
SAWHORSE
Zeke
Registered User
I guess this thread has petered out. I read every page over week+ and enjoyed the hell out of it. I'm posting this in hopes that some inspectors pick up the thread and report some of the funny stuff.
(that and I seem to need a min of posts to search member's posts, so I'm adding a post
)
(that and I seem to need a min of posts to search member's posts, so I'm adding a post
)Beniah Naylor
SAWHORSE
Is this one worthy?
Me too.
Zeke
Registered User
That joist hanger is ugly but I bet it works fine. If you asked Simpson to make them, they probably would like to oblige. Unfortunately getting all the certs for them would be prohibitive.
Zeke
Registered User
Well, you were a soldier. I can see your POV and I might have been a bit like that if I hadn't stayed on this side of the fence. When I started out most inspectors, if not all, were my father's age. It got where they'd roll up and ask for the card and sign. Not on the first footing inspection, but things like insulation were just a PITA for them to have another stop. They knew it was there. Didn't hurt to leave a few wrappers sticking out of the trash.
These days IDT anyone dares be so lax.
I know plenty that don’t bother to exit their vehicle. I have had contractors call and ask me to come out and take a look because they had zero confidence in the inspector that signed their card.
I have heard from owners that the inspector didn’t bother to look at the work.
I overheard a manager tell a new, nervous inspector to walk the site, look at the plans and pretend to know what you are doing….. then sign the card.
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Joe.B
Registered User
I can't relate just how bad it has become. I have told a few stories here. I might have told this one:
A few years ago I was assigned to a county district office. Not long into it the managers sat me down for a meeting. I was informed that I was not allowed to write corrections if another inspector had approved the work. If I was there to inspect for corrections, I was only allowed to verify that the corrections were completed and I was not allowed to write new corrections. As I was exiting the meeting an assistant office manager told me that I don’t need to write every correction that I see.
That day I was given a final inspection on a house. I had not been there previously. This was the third attempt at a final and there was a correction related to a stairway. As I walked up to the house, the contractor was installing the service panel dead front. I noticed that of the forty or more circuit breakers, none were AFCI.
I introduced myself and apologized that I wouldn’t be able to sign his job card. He was startled. He said that he had done the correction and if he failed today, liquidated damages would kick in. I told him that I am not allowed to write corrections so I can’t help him. He asked me to do the inspection. I made it clear that I would break the rules ... write corrections and tear him up or I could leave a note that says “Sorry I missed you. Schedule a followup inspection” He didn’t want either choice so I left.
The next day I met the inspector that had been with that project from the beginning. He asked me if it passed final. I told him that I couldn’t help them because there were no AFCI breakers. He said, “AFI??? I’ve heard of those. What are they?”
That inspector is now an assistant office manager. And by the way, he’s one of the smarter ones.
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Joe.B
Registered User
I'm glad I'm in a small town.
The joist hanger going up toward 11:00 looks ok. But i’m having a little problem seeing if the double 2x is cut to butt to the post, or is the post cut to provide a shelf?
The post is notched and it looks like two pieces due to a split.
I have held back with stories about the dire condition of the building departments of So. Ca. There isn’t a lot of interest and nothing will change. The people involved, that being the owners, contractors and regulators, wouldn’t have it any other way.
Naysayers like Mark K are clueless.
I once had a soils report for a single family addition of about 1000 sq.ft. The lot was flat in a sea of flat lots that were built out in 1950. I asked the contractor why there was a soils report. He said that the district grading and drainage engineer required the report.
I asked the G&D Engineer why he required the soils report and he said, “I am new to the office and I want to see what the soils are in this area.”
There’s a few takeaways here. The plan checker didn’t stop this from happening…. A Geotechnical Engineer took the money knowing it was not necessary. The contractor knew it was BS and did it anyway. The owner got screwed. The soil can differ from one side of a lot to the other.
Zeke
Registered User
I may have missed it somewhere in 263 pages, but what does "ICE" stand for? I heard the term tiger but I wasn't sure that was endearing.
Sorry, still trying to build posts.
Sorry, still trying to build posts.